mr. chairman , today we will vote on h.r. 3010 , the labor , health and human services , and education bill for fiscal year 2006 . 
on behalf of the educators , administrators and students in dallas , texas , i would like to express my strong opposition to the education appropriations outlined in this measure . 
the inadequate overall funding in h.r. 3010 completely undermines the public prioritization of education as a paramount concern . 
make no mistake -- these education cuts come as no surprise . 
beginning with the passage of the house budget resolution for fy 2006 , my republican colleagues have shown their true intentions with regard to education funding . 
as passed , the budget resolution provides $ 56 billion in discretionary funding for the department of education . 
this is a $ 530 million , or 0.9 percent decrease over the current fiscal year ( fy 2005 ) . 
this is the first time in over a decade that total education funding has been cut . 
although our children have no legislative voice , they represent our nation 's future and deserve our investment in their education today . 
as it stands , h.r. 3010 would cut funding for reading tours , teacher quality initiatives , bilingual instruction , class size reduction , school modernization , violence prevention initiatives , afterschool services and many other vital programs . 
specifically , the house labor-hhs-education appropriations bill would cut . 
no child left behind by $ 806 million ( 3.3 percent ) below the current level . 
under this bill , the nclb funding shortfall will be $ 13.2 billion next year and over $ 40 billion since enactment . 
the bill also cuts the $ 603 million increase the administration proposed for title i to help low-income children improve their reading and math skills to only $ 100 million . 
the administration 's request was already inadequate . 
however , under this bill , title i funding will be $ 9.9 billion below nclb 's funding promise for fy 2006 . 
the bill freezes after school centers , virtually for the fourth year in a row at $ 991 million even though only 38 percent of all after school applications nationwide could be funded last year . 
we are turning away children even though more than 14 million kids are unsupervised after school each day . 
it slashes education technology by $ 196 million ( 39.5 percent ) on top of a $ 196 million cut last year . 
one in four states have no other dedicated technology funds to track nclb student achievement data , improve teachers ' use of technology , and close the achievement gap through online learning . 
it eliminates comprehensive school reform grants to 1 , 000 high-poverty schools by eliminating the program . 
rigorous independent evaluations have shown that comprehensive school reform models such as success for all , america 's choice , high schools that work , first things first , and talent development are making a significant difference in helping schools implement integrated , schoolwide reform strategies . 
this bill turns its back on these schools . 
the bill cuts investments in teachers . 
it freezes the main nclb program to put a qualified teacher in every classroom -- teacher quality state grants -- at $ 2.9 billion for the 3rd consecutive year of a freeze or cut . 
the bill denies 80 percent of the administration 's $ 500 million request to provide an incentive for the best teachers to teach in the most challenging high-poverty schools . 
it cuts funds requested for math and science teachers by $ 79 million ( 29 percent ) . 
it even cuts teacher training in american history by $ 69 million ( 58 percent ) . 
it freezes impact aid payments to 1 , 300 school districts for over 1 million military and other federally-connected children , funding impact aid at approximately 35 percent below the maximum payments authorized for fy 2006 . 
the bill also freezes flexible innovative education grants , english language training , civic education , state assessments , and rural education . 
some of these programs have been frozen for four years in a row . 
although the republican majority promised low-income students a $ 100 increase in the maximum pell grant in the 2006 budget resolution , this bill provides only half that . 
the $ 50 increase would offset only 2 percent of the additional $ 2 , 300 in four-year public college costs since 2001 . 
if enacted , h.r. 3010 would be a grave disservice to our children and the future of our nation . 
for these reasons and more , i oppose the unsatisfactory education funding levels in this appropriations bill . 
unfortunately , underfunded education initiatives is not the only problem with this bill . 
the bill disinvests in job training and help for the unemployed -- cutting these programs by $ 346 million below the current level while 7.6 million americans remain out of work . 
finally , this legislation lacks appropriate funding levels for in the human services area , the committee cuts in half the community services block grant , a program aimed at helping the poorest people in our communities who often have no other place to turn . 
this is an improvement over the president 's plan to abolish the program entirely , but it still leaves more than 1 , 000 local community services agencies seriously short of resources to assist low-income people . 
the purpose of this block grant is to provide flexible funds to meet whatever a local community considers their most important needs , whether it be for job training , emergency food aid , programs for low-income seniors , or home weatherization . 
the bill also cuts the low-income home energy assistance program ( liheap ) by almost $ 200 million -- even though there 's no reason to expect that we wo n't have another winter of sky-high heating oil and natural gas prices . 
over the past four years , the average cost of heating a home with oil has almost doubled , and the share of that cost covered by the average liheap grant has fallen by half , from 49 percent to 25 percent . 
clearly , i can not support this bill as written . 
in its current form , this legislation is nothing less than an insult to the american people . 
it inadequately and irresponsibly allocates money to labor , health and human services , and education . 
however , should this bill return from the senate with the appropriate funding levels , i will gladly support it . 
i sincerely hope we can work out the problems and pass a responsible bill that responds to the needs of our children , workers , and elderly citizens . 
